“A million of them,” she admitted.
Geoffrey’s gaze narrowed. “But there’s something different this time, isn’t there? I can see it in your eyes.”
She nodded, finally daring to admit aloud what she’d seen in Josh that scared her. “Dinah says he has staying power.”
“She’s good at reading people, no question about that,” Geoffrey said. He paused to study her. “So, does that terrify you?”
“It should, shouldn’t it?”
He chuckled. “That’s not what I asked. Does it?”
“Not so much,” she admitted, still amazed by the sense of peace that stole through her when she thought about the two of them and forever. “I just don’t know whether I can trust any of it—what I’m feeling, what he’s feeling, the little glimpses I keep getting of the future. I’ve never gotten that far before.”
“Take it from a man who got hit by a bolt from the blue after about a thousand false starts, Maggie. If Josh is the one, grab on to him and don’t let go. It’s worth every roller-coaster up and down you’ll go through.”
She grinned at his blissful expression. “No regrets for you, then?”
“Not a one.”
“Really?” She regarded him skeptically. “Have you had any contact at all with your family?”
“Martin is my family,” he said determinedly, though there was no mistaking the sorrow shadowing his eyes when he spoke.
“Maybe your folks will come around,” Maggie said. “They only wanted what was best for you.”
“No, they wanted a heterosexual son who’d fill the house with grandchildren in the fine old Latham tradition. They’ll never understand my choice, much less accept it.”
“I’m sorry.”
He smiled sadly. “So am I, some of the time. The rest of the time, I’m just grateful that I was brave enough to walk away and live the life I was meant to live.”
The mention of bravery gave Maggie something more to think about. If Geoffrey was brave enough to risk everything for love, maybe she could be, as well. Not that she was in love with Josh just yet, but when the time came. If it came, she amended.
Needing a distraction from that line of thought, she asked, “Geoffrey, can I use your phone? My cell-phone battery died. I forgot to charge it.”
“Other things on your mind, I’m sure,” he said with undisguised amusement, then gestured toward his phone. “Help yourself.”
She dialed the number for Images, growing more and more impatient when no one picked up. She disconnected, then dialed again. Same result. No answer. Panic threaded through her just as the bell over the front door rang and Josh called out.
“Back here,” Maggie responded as she lifted the receiver and dialed one more time.
Josh walked into Geoffrey’s office and automatically dropped a kiss on her forehead. “You two been catching up?”
She gave him a wry look. “You certainly gave us long enough to do it,” she said as she listened to the phone continue to ring at the gallery.
Josh didn’t rise to the bait. “One of the places I went had exactly the kind of crown molding Cord’s been looking for. It took a while to make the deal and load up the truck.”
She was taken aback that he’d actually been conducting the business he’d claimed to have. Until that moment, she realized she hadn’t trusted that he wasn’t sitting in his truck around the corner, on his cell phone with the Charleston police or with Cord.
Slowly she put Geoffrey’s phone back in its cradle. “I think we need to go, Josh,” she said, trying to keep the panic from her voice.
He picked up on it, anyway, and frowned. “What’s going on?”
“I’ve been trying to reach Ellie at the gallery, and no one’s answering.”
“Maybe she’s in the bathroom,” he said, his voice calm as he took out his cell phone and punched in a number.
Maybe she was, Maggie conceded, but she couldn’t seem to shake an image of Ellie being locked in there bound and gagged.
“Come on, dammit, pick up,” Josh muttered, which told her he was as worried as she was.
“Are you calling the gallery?” she asked.
“No. I’m calling Cord.”
“You’d probably have better luck with your detective friend,” she said. “Cord and Dinah tend to be hard to reach these days.”
He looked surprised. “Cord always answers his cell phone.”
“Oh, really? Maybe that’s the mistake I’ve been making. I’ve been trying their home phone.”
Still frowning, Josh hung up and tried again. This time right after he hit the talk button, his expression brightened. “There you are. I was beginning to worry.” He listened, then grinned. “Sorry to interrupt, but we have ourselves a situation.”
He explained about Maggie’s attempts to reach anyone at the gallery, then nodded. “We’re about to hit the road. Call me back as soon as you know anything, okay?”
“What did he say?” Maggie asked.
“He’s calling the police and heading over to the gallery himself. He’ll call as soon as he gets there.”
“I don’t like this,” Maggie said.
“I’m not crazy about it myself,” Josh admitted. “Let’s get going.”
Maggie nodded, then bent down to give Geoffrey a kiss. “I know Great-Grandmother’s desk is in good hands.”
“It’ll be good as new when I’m finished,” Geoffrey promised. “You’ll let me know what’s going on up there?”
“As soon as we know,” Maggie agreed.
Geoffrey turned to Josh. “Keep her safe, okay?”
Josh nodded. “That’s the plan.”
“No matter how she balks,” Geoffrey added with a pointed look in her direction.
Josh chuckled. “Ah, I see you know her well.”
“Most of her life,” Geoffrey said. “Which means I know she won’t make anything easy for you. Don’t give up.”
Josh looked vaguely perplexed. “Are we still talking about keeping her safe?”
“Not entirely,” Geoffrey admitted. “Just keep that advice in mind whatever happens to come up between the two of you.”
Maggie gave her old friend a frustrated look. “Stop going over to the enemy. You’re supposed to be on my side.”
“I am on your side, darling. Always.” Geoffrey gave her a stern look. “But you don’t always know what’s best for you. It’s up to those of us who love you to stick together to overcome that stubborn streak.”
“Amen to that,” Josh said, shaking Geoffrey’s hand. “If I need any pointers, I’ll be sure to give you a call.”
“Always happy to oblige,” Geoffrey said.
Exasperated with the pair of them, Maggie headed for the door. “I’m leaving. You all can continue this lovefest if you want to.”
“Right behind you,” Josh said, amusement threading through his voice.
She scowled at him when they were in the truck. “You enjoyed that, didn’t you?”
Josh switched on the ignition. “What?”
“Winning over my friend.”
“It’s not about taking sides, sugar,” he said as he pulled away from the curb. “You heard the man. It’s about making sure you’re safe. When it comes to that, I’ll hook up with anyone who can help me get the job done.”
“You’re a little obsessed. You know that, don’t you?”
“Would you like it better if I just sat back and let you get yourself killed?”
“I am not going to get myself killed,” she said. “That’s absurd.”
“A few days ago you told me Brian was all talk,” Josh reminded her. “Can you say the same thing after seeing the damage he caused at Images? Isn’t that why you were in such a panic when Ellie didn’t answer the phone? You know there could be a dozen different explanations, but the first thing that came to mind was Brian.”
Maggie sat back. “Okay, yes,” she admitted wearily as a vision of the mess and the viciousness behind it reeled through her mind.
“Then let me help,” Josh said. “I know you’re strong. I know you’re capable. I know you’ve been fighting your own battles for a long time now. I just want to be around in case you need backup, okay?”
The request was so reasonable when he put it that way, she could hardly deny it. “Okay.”
He seemed stunned by her easy acquiescence. “Will you let me stay at your place for a while?”
She regarded him with a narrowed gaze. This was a twist she hadn’t seen coming. “You want to move in?”
He nodded.
“Maybe we should wait till we see what’s happened today before making that kind of decision,” she said, feeling even more uneasy now than she had when her calls to the gallery hadn’t been answered.
“Come on, Maggie. Until this whole thing is over, I’m not going to feel good about you being alone. I’ll sleep on the sofa, if that’ll make you happier.”
She frowned. “Why would that make me happier?”
He glanced at her. “I don’t want you getting the idea that this is just about me getting into your bed.”
“Since we’ve pretty much established that I like having you in my bed, I don’t think that’ll be an issue,” she said candidly. She thought about his proposal for some time, then said, “Okay, you can move in.”
“Thank goodness,” he said.
“You sound awfully relieved,” she noted.
He grinned. “I had a plan B. It was a little over the top.”
“Which was?”
“You don’t want to know.”
“Oh, I want to know,” she assured him. “You don’t want me to know in case you have to use it later.”
“That, too,” he conceded. He reached for her hand and wove his fingers through hers, then lifted their hands and brushed a kiss across her knuckles. “Thank you for being reasonable.”
“I’m always reasonable,” she said stoutly.
When his laughter filled the cab of the truck, she was tempted to take back her offer, but then she chuckled, too. Who was she kidding? She was never reasonable.
And the fact that it hadn’t scared Josh away was absolutely mind-boggling.
21
As satisfied as he was with Maggie’s agreement to let him move in, Josh began to seriously worry when they’d driven for miles without getting a call from Cord. Something was obviously up at the gallery, and he didn’t like his gut-deep sense that it wasn’t good.
“Why do you think Cord hasn’t called back?” Maggie asked eventually, her tone echoing his worry. “Something’s really wrong. I can feel it.”
“Let’s try not to imagine the worst,” Josh told her, even though his mind had traveled down that same path.
Just then his cell phone rang. At last! He had to gently bat Maggie’s hand away to keep her from grabbing it from him. Whatever the news was, he wanted to be the one to hear it first.
“Cord?”
“Yeah. Sorry to take so long to get back to you, but I wanted to gather all the facts before I called.”
“What the hell is going on? Is Ellie okay?”
“Ellie’s fine. So is the gallery, but not for lack of trying on someone’s part,” Cord said, his voice tight with tension.
“Tell me.”
“Someone started a fire out back in one of the trash bins. They set it so it blocked the back exit. It was also close enough for the door to catch fire, which I’m sure was just what they had in mind. By the time Ellie smelled the smoke at the same time the alarm went off, there was a pretty good blaze going back there. The fire department got here before there was any damage inside, but the whole place reeks of smoke. We’ve got fans going now.”
“Water damage?”
“None. The worst of the fire was contained outside in that trash bin. I’ve arranged for the waste management company to haul away the trash bin as soon as the police and fire department give the okay. And I’ve already gone to get a replacement for the back door. I got a metal one this time.”
“Thanks, pal. We’ll be there in another forty-five minutes or so. Stick around, okay?”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Cord assured him. “I can’t help thinking how much worse this could have been if the fire had been set at night or at either Maggie’s home or Ellie’s.”
“Believe me, the same thought has already crossed my mind,” Josh said.
“You having any luck on that plan we discussed earlier?”
“Taken care of,” Josh replied.
“Well, that’s something at least.”
“Yeah, but is it enough?” Josh said, his gaze shifting briefly to Maggie, who was looking way too pale. “See you soon and thanks, Cord. I appreciate it.”
He hung up slowly, expecting Maggie to deluge him with questions. Instead, she was strangely silent.
“How much of that did you get?” he asked.
“Enough to know that I’m not going to like the rest,” she said. “What happened?”
“Someone set a fire out back.”
What little color there was in her face drained out. “Ellie?” she asked.
“She’s okay. The smoke detector went off and she smelled the smoke and got help before there was any damage inside the gallery.”
“God,” Maggie said. “You were right. Brian really is messed up, isn’t he?”
“I’d say so. The cops will get him, though, Maggie. And in the meantime, we’ll make sure you and Ellie are safe. Do you trust me to see to that?”
“I know you’ll try,” she said wearily, then lay her head against the back of the seat and closed her eyes.
It wasn’t the ringing endorsement Josh might have preferred, but it was something, at least from a woman who had plenty of well-honed trust issues.
Maggie didn’t want to get out of the truck when they finally arrived at Images. Despite Josh’s reassurances that there’d been no serious damage, she didn’t want to see one more shred of evidence of just how dangerous and out of control Brian was. The sight of the fire truck that remained at the scene was proof enough of that. It shook her in ways that the vicious vandalism had not.
Before she could tell Josh she wanted to go home, though, Dinah was opening the passenger door of the truck. Ellie was with her, and Warren was lurking behind them, his expression filled with concern.
“Are things so bad you thought it smart to have a shrink here in case I flip out or something?” Maggie asked the two women.
“Everything is just fine inside,” Ellie said, “I promise. Warren stopped by just after I called the fire department. He stuck around to help.”
“And you?” Maggie asked. “How are you?”
“A little shaky, but mostly from the adrenaline rush wearing off.”
“You should be home resting,” Maggie told her.
“I agree,” Warren said, putting an arm around Ellie’s shoulders protectively.
What was that about? Maggie wondered. Interesting.
Then Dinah said, “Ellie refused to leave till you got here. Vicki’s inside, too. I think she has designs on one of the firefighters.”
The comment actually succeeded in making Maggie smile. Things were getting back to normal if Vicki was using the fire as an opportunity to go on the hunt for a new man.
Inside, there was a faint whiff of smoke in the air, but the huge fans that had been brought in had dispersed most of it. In the back with the new door already in place, it didn’t look as if anything had happened. She couldn’t bring herself to open the door and look outside, though. She was relieved that Warren and Ellie hadn’t come into the back with her. Dinah, however, hadn’t left her side.
“Sit,” Dinah ordered. “You look a little shaky.”
“I’m okay,” Maggie said, but she sat just the same.
“I think you should come and stay with Cord and me,” Dinah said decisively. “I won’t take no for an answer.”
“And interrupt the eternal honeymoon? I don’t think so,” Maggie retorted. “Besides, I got
a better deal.”
“Oh?”
“Josh is moving in,” she said, then quickly added, “temporarily.”
Dinah’s mouth gaped. “You agreed to that?”
“It seemed like the sensible thing to do.”
Dinah’s lips curved. “Sensible, huh? Did you agree to this before or after you heard about the fire?”
“Before, as a matter of fact.”
“Even more telling.”
“Oh, go stuff a sock in it.”
“The response of a woman who knows I’m right. Josh is moving in because you like the idea, not because you’re scared. If it were just a matter of being scared, you’d be moving in with us or your folks.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Maggie said.
“Tell me that when he’s still underfoot months from now,” Dinah responded cheerfully.
“That is not going to happen,” Maggie replied.
But somewhere deep down inside, she was very much afraid that it might. Now, that was something that should really terrify her. Strangely, it did not.
Josh swung by the motel to pick up his things before taking Maggie home. He didn’t want to risk letting her out of his sight, mostly because he feared she’d change her mind if she had time to think about letting him move in with her and all the possible motives he might have for requesting it, motives that went beyond her safety. He was a little muddy on that himself.
When he pulled into a parking space outside his room, Nadine immediately appeared next door. “You’re home,” she said, her face alight with curiosity. “Did you and Maggie have yourselves a real good time?”
Maggie emerged from the truck and Nadine flushed. “Sorry. I didn’t see you in there,” Nadine apologized, though she didn’t look especially contrite.
To Josh’s relief, Maggie merely looked amused.
“That’s okay,” she assured Nadine. “You’re a mother. You have a right to ask your son if I’ve kept him adequately entertained.”
“That is not what I was asking him,” Nadine protested weakly. “Not exactly, anyway.” She shrugged off her obvious embarrassment and, hands on her hips, demanded, “Okay, are you two ready to admit you’re an item or what? I’m getting tired of pretending I don’t see what’s going on right under my nose.”
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